Gaming interface and systems and methods for providing same

ABSTRACT

Disclosed are new and innovative methods and systems for coordinating a game having a plurality of players. One of the methods comprises: enabling each of the plurality of players to create a team of champions; and creating a one or more real-time battles between a plurality of human players.

BACKGROUND

Autobattler (also known as auto chess) is a new video game genre thathas quickly taken the gaming community by storm. In less than a year,several autobattler games have been released to meet growing demands. Ata high level, autobattler games are tactical strategy games that haveplayers play the role of a team manager and tactician. To win, a playermust build a strong team across several rounds of a match. A player canbuy, upgrade, and sell characters (e.g., units, heroes, champions) everyround and deploy those characters into a tactical formation for battle,and equip them with powerful items. Each of these decisions must be madestrategically.

In general, players start an autobattler match with an empty board andbuild their team from scratch. As the match progresses, players canbuild a larger team and have more characters on the board. Part of thestrategy is character placement, which can determine the outcome of abattle. For example, it is generally a good idea to place a defensivecharacter in front of a non-defensive (e.g., offensive) character.

The most popular autobattler game in the autobattler genre is RiotGames' TeamFight Tactics (“TFT”), which has characters (e.g., champions)based on the popular League of Legends universe. Disclosed herein arenew and innovative features first introduced in TFT.

SUMMARY

Provided herein are embodiments of systems and methods for conductingone or more game sessions having autobattler features and/or formatching players in an online game. One of the systems comprises amemory and one or more processors coupled to the memory. The one or moreprocessors of the system is configured to: select a first and a secondplayer from a plurality of human players, wherein each of the pluralityof human players has a home arena; designate a home arena of the firstplayer as a host arena; and create a battle matchup between the firstand second players on the host arena.

When the number of players is an odd number, the system is configured tomatch the odd player with a duplicate army of one of the plurality ofhuman players. The match between the odd player and the duplicate armycan be on a home arena of the odd player.

The system can also generate an avatar for each player that can be movedaround the host arena by the player. Each player can perform variousactions with the avatar such as a cheer, a taunt, and/or a show ofrespect (e.g., a bow, a thumb up) for the other player.

One of the methods for creating an autobattler match in an online gameincludes: selecting a first and a second player from a plurality ofhuman players; designating a home arena of the first player as a hostarena; and creating a battle matchup between the first and secondplayers on the host arena. In some embodiments, each of the plurality ofhuman players has a home arena that can be customized by each of theplayer.

The method further includes creating a match between an odd player inthe game and a duplicate army of one of the plurality of human players.The match between the odd player and the duplicate army can on a homearena of the odd player.

The method also includes generating an avatar for each player that canbe moved around the host arena by the player. Additionally, the methodincludes enabling the players to perform various actions with theiravatars such as a cheer, a taunt, and/or a show of respect for the otherplayer.

A second-described method for creating an autobattler match in an onlinegame includes creating a battle matchup between a first and secondplayer on a home arena of the first player; and generating a first andsecond avatar for the first and second players, respectively. The firstand second avatars can be moved around the home arena by the first andsecond players, respectively.

Also disclosed is a third-described method for coordinating one or morepair-matched battles. This third method includes: enabling each of aplurality of players to create a team of champions; and creating one ormore real-time battles between a plurality of human players, whereineach of the plurality of human players controls a team of champions, andeach real-time battle is on the home arena of one of the players. One ormore champions from the team of champions can be selected (by eachplayer) from a list of champions.

The one or more real-time battles can comprise four pair-matchedbattles, each battle involving two human players. A pair-matched battleis a battle between two human players occurring in real-time on one ofthe players' home arena where each of the human players is controllinghis/her non-cloned (e.g., non-duplicate) team of champions. In otherwords, a pair-matched battle is between two non-cloned teams ofchampions, each team is controlled by a human player. A cloned team is aduplicate of a team resulting in a human player having two or more teamsof champions in the game with each team at a different location orarena. A game can have many simultaneous battles. If a player only hasone team of champions in a game, by definition that team is a non-clonedteam. In each game, at least two of the one or more battles can occursimultaneously. In some embodiments, all battles can occursimultaneously.

If the one or more battles comprises an odd number of real-time battles,the odd battle (e.g., 7^(th) battle) having an unpaired human player isbetween the unpaired human player and a duplicate team of champions ofone of the plurality of players.

The home arena can be a unique arena for each of the plurality of humanplayers, which can be designed and/or customized by each player. Thearena can be customized before the start of the match. In someembodiments, the arena can be customized at various points of the match(e.g., after each round).

Also disclosed is a second-described system for coordinating an onlinegame, the second system comprising: a battle generation moduleconfigured to create a one or more real-time battles between a pluralityof human players, wherein each of the one or more real-time battles ison a home arena of one of the plurality of human players. A home arenaof a player can be an arena selected and/or designed by the player. Thehome arena can be selected before the start of the game or at any timeduring the game. Each player can have a unique home arena.

Also disclosed herein is a fourth-described method for previewing acombined item and/or manipulating one or more in-game items. The fourthmethod comprises hovering a first in-game item over an in-gamecharacter; and displaying an information window having information abouta combined item or an effect that would have been generated if the firstin-game item is dropped onto the in-game character. The fourth methodfurther comprises dropping the first in-game item onto the in-gamecharacter; and generating the combined item or effect without having thein-game character to first equip the first in-game item. An effect canbe an attribute enhancement such as, but not limited to, a defense or anattack bonus.

Also disclosed herein is a fifth-described method for manipulating oneor more in-game items. The fifth method comprises hovering a firstin-game item over a second in-game item; and displaying an informationwindow having information about a third in-game item that would begenerated when the first and second in-game items are combined. Thefifth method further comprises dropping the first in-game item on top ofthe second in-game item; and generating the third in-game item such thata player can interact with the third in-game item, wherein the thirdin-game item is generated without having to equip the first or secondin-game item onto an in-game character (e.g., champion).

The fifth for manipulating one or more in-game items further comprisesdragging the third in-game item over to the in-game character; anddisplaying a second information window having information about anenhanced ability of the in-game character if the character is to equipthe third in-game item, wherein the second information window isdisplayed without having to equip the third in-game item onto thein-game character.

The enhanced ability comprises one or more of an enhanced weaponability, an enhanced magic ability, an enhanced skill ability, a weaponupgrade, a magic upgrade, or a skill upgrade, etc. The informationwindow can be a semi-transparent window, a transparent window, or anopaque window. The first and second in-game items can be a weapon, anobject, an attribute (e.g., stamina, health, mana) modifier, an armor,or a combination thereof.

Also disclosed herein are embodiments of systems and methods formanipulating one or more in-game items using a graphical interface. Thesixth-described method comprises: selecting a first in-game item usingthe graphical interface; dropping a first in-game item on top of asecond in-game item that is displayed on the graphical interface; andgenerating a third in-game item such that a player can interact with thethird in-game item using the graphical interface, wherein the thirdin-game item is generated without the first or second in-game item beingequipped by an in-game character.

Also disclosed is a third-described system for manipulating one or morein-game items on a graphical interface. The third system comprises amemory and one or more processors coupled to the memory. The one or moreprocessors are configured to: hover a first in-game item over a secondin-game item; and display an information window having information abouta third in-game item that would be generated when combining the firstand second in-game items.

Also disclosed is a seventh-described method for performing ashared-draft that enables players to select one or more champions tobuild a team. The seventh method comprises displaying a group of playersin a first lineup on a display; displaying a group of selectablechampions in a second lineup on the display; allowing a first playerfrom the group of players to select a champion from the group ofselectable champions based at least on one or more attributes of thefirst player; and allowing a second player, after the first player hasselected a champion, from the group of players to select a champion fromthe group of selectable champions based at least on one or moreattributes of the second player. The first lineup can surround thesecond lineup partially or fully. The selectable champions of the secondlineup can move around, such as in a circular fashion as a group. Eachof the first and second lineups can be a circle, a polygon, a square, ora rectangle. The second lineup can be outside of the first lineup. Thesecond lineup can partially or fully surround the first lineup.

Also disclosed is a fourth-described system for performing ashared-draft that enables players to select one or more champions tobuild a team, the fourth system comprises a memory and one or moreprocessors coupled to the memory. The one or more processors can beconfigured to: display a group of players in a first lineup on adisplay; display a group of selectable champions in a second lineup onthe display; allow a first player from the group of players to select achampion from the group of selectable champions based at least on one ormore attributes of the first player; and allow a second player, afterthe first player has selected a champion, from the group of players toselect a champion from the group of selectable champions based at leaston one or more attributes of the second player.

Other features and advantages of the present invention will be or willbecome apparent to one with skill in the art upon examination of thefollowing figures and detailed description, which illustrate, by way ofexamples, the principles of the present invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing summary, as well as the following detailed description, isbetter understood when read in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings. The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein andform part of the specification, illustrate a plurality of embodimentsand, together with the description, further serve to explain theprinciples involved and to enable a person skilled in the relevantart(s) to make and use the disclosed technologies.

FIGS. 1A, 1B, 1C and 1D are example graphical interfaces of a game inaccordance with some aspects of the disclosure.

FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrate how in-game items can be manipulated inaccordance with some aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 3 is an example graphical depiction of how items can be combined inaccordance with some aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a grid illustrating example item combinations.

FIG. 5 is a process flow chart for combining items in accordance withsome aspects of the disclosure.

FIGS. 6A and 6B are example interfaces that enable players to draftchampions and build a team in accordance with some aspects of thedisclosure.

FIG. 7A is an example graphical interface with an arena mini-map inaccordance with some aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 7B is a closeup view of the arena mini-map of FIG. 7A.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating the gaming system in accordancewith some aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary hardware implementation ofthe gaming system illustrated in FIGS. 1 through 8 in accordance withsome aspects of the disclosure.

The figures and the following description describe certain embodimentsby way of illustration only. One skilled in the art will readilyrecognize from the following description that alternative embodiments ofthe structures and methods illustrated herein may be employed withoutdeparting from the principles described herein. Reference will now bemade in detail to several embodiments, examples of which are illustratedin the accompanying figures. It is noted that wherever practicable,similar or like reference numbers may be used in the figures to indicatesimilar or like functionality.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Disclosed herein is an interactive gaming environment of a turn-basedgame with innovative interfaces and features to make the turn-based gameengaging, exciting, innovative, efficient, and intuitive. The disclosedturn-based game (hereinafter can be referred to as “the game”) is a freefor all game that pits players against each other until a single winnerremains. Each game can have up to eight players. In each game, playerscan acquire gold to purchase champions during various stages of the game(e.g., planning and battles stages) to build a team. Throughout thegame, the player's team can become more powerful as the player draftschampions that share origins and classes to unlock trait bonuses. Theplayer can also combine three duplicates of the same champion to upgradethe champion's star level. For example, three identical one-star levelchampions will create a two-level copy of that champion. A two-starchampion has better attributes such as, but not limited to, health,attack damage, and defense than a one-star champion. Similarly, threeidentical two-star champions can be combined to create a three-starchampion.

Other innovative features include methods for intuitive itemcombinations to create new in-game items. The new and innovative itemcombination feature eliminates the need to bring up an inventory pagebelonging to a player (or a champion), equip and/or hold two or moreitems selected from the inventory page, and combine the equipped items.Items can be combined at various stages of the game (e.g., planningstage, battling stage). Even in the planning stage, time is limited. Forexample, the planning stage can last 30 seconds or less. During thislimited timeframe, players must finish buying, selling, trading, and/orequipping items on champions. Time is even more limited and essentialduring the battling stage as the opposing team will not wait for aplayer to figure out a strategy for an item combination. Thus, theconventional ways of creating a new item, e.g., by opening an inventoryscreen, equip/hold two or more items from the inventory screen, and thencombine the equipped items, are too tedious and inefficient to beeffective—especially during a synchronous battle. A battle could easilybe lost while a player spends time finding desired items from theinventory page and then equip and combine them. Accordingly, a new andmore efficient way is needed to perform item combinations during anactive real-time battle.

Additionally, an item can be combined with an already equipped itemsimply by dragging and dropping the item over to the champion with theequipped item. This will create a new equipped item (e.g., cursed bladeor Warmog's armor) or a new effect (e.g., ionic spark or red buff) forthe champion immediately without having to open up an intermediateinventory screen.

Each of the multiple players in the game can have an arena (e.g., abattle environment) that is unique to each respective player. The gamecan have a total of eight players. In some embodiments, the game canhave more than eight players. The interactive gaming environment caninclude an arena mini-map that enables each player to select and viewthe other player's arena unique design and/or layout and any battlecurrently in progress on the selected arena. The arena mini-map providesan efficient way for a player to observe an in-progress battle betweentwo other players in the same game as a spectator. The player can selectand observe another player's arena and any battle thereon simply byselecting the unique icon in the arena selection area for thatparticular player. In some embodiments, the arena mini-map can haveeight different icons arranged within a square box. The different iconscan also be arranged within another shape such as a circle, a hexagon,or an octagon. Each icon can have the same color scheme of the arena forthat particular player. Each player can be represented by an avatar,which can also be displayed in the arena mini-map.

Battles between two players can be automatically arranged by a battlegeneration module (see 815 of FIG. 8), which can match players randomlyor based at least on one or more attributes of each player. For example,the battle generation module can match a first player with a secondplayer based at least in part on the one or more attributes of the firstplayer and/or the second player. The one or more attributes can be aplayer's personality score such as, but not limited to, a leader score,a teammate score, a sportsmanship score, a mentor score, and anaggression score. The battle generation module can also match a firstplayer with another player based on a degree of connection between twoplayers. Players that have a first degree of connection with the firstplayer can be matched first. Next, players with a second degree ofconnection with the first player can be considered after theavailability of players with a first degree of connection has beenexhausted. Lastly, players with a third degree of connection with thefirst player can be considered. A first degree of connection exists whentwo players have mutually commended each other in one or more previousgames. A second degree of connection exists between a first player and athird player when i) the first player commended a second player; and ii)the second and the third players have mutually commended each other in aprevious game. A third degree of connection exists between a firstplayer and a third player when a second player with second degreeconnection with the first player commends a third player in a previousgame. Other battle matching processes are described in detail in U.S.patent application Ser. No. 15/706,551, now U.S. patent Publ. No.2018/0126281, entitled “Systems and Methods That Enable Player MatchingFor Multi-Player Online Games,” filed on Sep. 15, 2017, which is herebyincorporated by reference in its entirety.

The battle matching and selection process can have a playoff(elimination) structure until a single player is victorious by being thelast team of champions standing or the team of champions with thehighest score. The game can have four or more players at the start ofthe initial battle round (round 1). For example, if there are eightplayers, then four different synchronous battles can be automaticallyarranged by the automatic battle creation module, which can randomlymatch players or can match players based at least on one or moreattributes of the player's team (e.g., ranking, records, teamcomposition). A synchronous real-time battle is a battle between twohuman players occurring at real-time. If there is an odd number ofplayers in the game, a human player and his champions will battleagainst cloned champions of a team (e.g., ghost team or army) of anotherhuman player.

Once the game starts, a shared-draft round can be conducted immediately.This is when a player can pick his/her first champion from a carousel ofchampions. The shared-draft round can also be conducted after severalpair-matched battles. For example, a shared-draft round can occur afterevery three or four pair-matched battles. A pair-matched battle is abattle between two human players occurring in real-time on one of theplayers' home arena. A carousel of champions is a platform in whichdraftable champions are placed in the center of the platform and playersare placed on the outside surrounding the draftable champions. In acarousel like fashion, draftable champions can move (e.g., walk, rotate)about the platform such that the position of each champion relative to aplayer is constantly changing. In some embodiments, the draftablechampions can rotate in a circle. The layout of the platform can bereversed with draftable champions on the outside surrounding the playerson the inside of the platform.

Before the drafting process starts, each player is imprisoned by abarrier that prevents players from moving. The barrier can be aphysical, an invisible, or an energy barrier. In some embodiments, thebarrier can be an energy barrier. Once the energy barrier opens for aplayer, the player can then run to the desired champion and touch it todraft it. Care must be given when running to the desired champion, asthe first champion the player touches will be the drafted champion.There are no do-overs. The energy barrier that is imprisoning the playercan open based at least on an attribute (e.g., health, experiences,gold) of the player. Health and experiences are dictated by the player'sperformance in one or more previous battles. The energy barrier can be acircle, a square, a rectangle, a polygon, or any other suitable shape.

The energy barrier can also open based on players' past performancessuch as a losing or winning streak. In some embodiments, the energybarriers of players having the lowest health will open first. Thisallows players that did not do well in previous battles a chance to makea comeback. To add hysteresis, chance, and luck to the drafting process,champions in the carousel are constantly moving (e.g., rotating in acircle) while the players remain stationary. This means the desiredchampion may be far away when a player is free to move to that champion.And because the desired champion may be far away, another player that iscloser to the desired champion can get to the desired champion first.More detail on the team drafting process will be provided below withrespect to FIG. 6A.

Once the players are finished recruiting their team, a planning stagecan follow. The planning stage allows the players to view and purchasethe champions available in the store. The planning stage also provides abrief period for the player to strategize, select, and place theirchampions at various locations on the battlefield. Once the planningstage is over, multiple and simultaneous synchronous battles cancommence, which can be observable by selecting a host's arena using thearena mini-map of the interactive gaming interface.

After the battles between the players are arranged, the visiting playersare transported to the arenas of the host players. During combat, thechampions of each team will move, attack, and cast spells automatically.At the end of each round, each player earns some gold based at least onthe player's performance (e.g., number of champions survived, number ofdamage inflicted, winning streak, losing streak). Gold can also beearned from interest on the number of gold generators in the player'spossession. Gold can be used to purchase more champions from the storeor to buy experience points to level up faster. The store can show arandomized list of available champions that the player can purchase withthe player's gold. The player can also spend gold to refresh the store,which provides a new list of purchasable champions.

FIG. 1A illustrates an interface 100 in accordance with some embodimentsof the present disclosure. Interface 100 includes a battlefield (e.g.,arena) 105, battle staging areas or benches 110 and 112, a store 115, atrait tracker 120, an inventory area 125, a scoreboard 130, a roundindicator 135, a stage indicator 140, champions 145, and a mini-map 150.Interface 100 can have a different design for each player. For example,the patterns and/or color of arena 105 can be different for each of theplayers. Additionally, background landscape 107 can also be different.In some embodiments, the players can design and generate their own arena105 and landscape 107. Although not shown, arena 105 can have elevationchanges (e.g., hills and valleys) and landscape features such as rivers,lakes, forests, and deserts. In some embodiments, the player can spendgold to purchase a customizable arena such that various landscapefeatures can be added, modified, and/or deleted. Arena 105 can also haveselectable themes such as a trireme or war galley theme, a moon-basetheme (e.g., a base on the moon), a volcano-base theme, an airshiptheme, etc. Each arena theme can be purchasable with gold or can beawarded once the player obtains certain achievements. In someembodiments, a player can spend gold to activate a feature of arena 105that can provide an advantage for the home team. For example, a mountainor a fort that would provide defensive bonuses to a champion can bepurchased with gold earned during the game.

Benches 110 and 112 are staging areas for champions of both teams. Bench110 is located at the bottom of arena 105. Bench 110 houses championsfor the team of the local player, that is the player locally interactingwith the interface 100. In other words, from the local playerperspective, interface 100 as shown in FIG. 1 is what the local playersees.

Bench 112 is located at the top of arena 105 and houses champions of theteam for the remote player. In this way, from any player perspective,his/her team is always shown on the bottom. A remote player is theplayer competing with the local player. The remote player can be a humanplayer or it can be a clone of a human player's team for scenarios withan odd number of players. For example, a game can start even thoughthere is an odd number of players in the game. In this scenario, a teamcan be automatically generated using a duplicate of one of the humanplayer's team. In this way, the game can proceed without delay.

Store 115 displays a list of additional champions that the user canpurchase during various stages of the game (e.g., the planning stage,battling stage). For example, during the planning stage, the player canbuy one or more new characters (e.g., Zed, a ninja assassin). If theplayer has three of the same champion (Zed), an automatic characterboost will occur. Three normal or one-star level Zeds will become atwo-star level Zed. Similarly, three two-star level Zeds will becombined to create a three-star level Zed. In another example, if thereare two one-star level Lucians (a gunslinger) on bench 110 and theplayer purchases another Lucian from store 115, then the three one-starlevel Lucians will create a two-star level Lucian.

Stage indicator 140 shows the current stage of the game, which can havefour main stages: a planning stage, a battling stage, a post-battlingstage where scores and gold can be calculated and awarded, and adrafting stage. Champions can also be sold and purchased during thebattling stage. For example, during a battle, a champion can be sold bydragging and dropping the champion to store 115. To purchase a championfrom store 115, the champion can be dragged onto bench 110.

At various stages of the game (e.g., planning stage and battling stage),players can purchase additional champions from store 115. The type ofchampions in store 115 for each player can be random. However, eachplayer can spend more gold to refresh the list of available championsthat can be purchased from store 115. In some embodiments, the championsdisplayed in store 115 for all players come from a common deck (e.g.,list). Each store 115 of each player can show four champions from thecommon deck at a time. If a player does not like the list of championsshown in their respective store 115, the player can spend gold torefresh or randomize a new list of champions from the common deck.

Once a champion is purchased, it will be placed into one of the slots onbench 110. The local player can also see purchasing activities of theremote player by observing for activities on the remote player's bench112. In some embodiments, items can also be purchased from store 115.Purchased items can be displayed in the inventory area 125. Championsand/or items from store 115 can be purchased by clicking, dragging, anddropping the champions and/or items onto bench 110 and/or inventory area125.

As previously mentioned, a champion can also be sold from bench 110 bydragging it to store 115. If a champion is sold with one or moreequipped items, the equipped items will automatically appear ininventory area 125.

Each champion has an origin and a potential class bonus for which thechampion can be qualified. This data can be shown on trait tracker 120.Using trait tracker 120 as a guide, a player can quickly developstrategies for champions on her team.

Inventory area 125 displays items such as weapons, supplies, trinkets,and other game items that are either purchasable or dropped by monstersor champions in the game. Each dropped item can be represented by aunique graphical icon. If an item is dropped (or appeared) on arena 105,it can be picked up by clicking and dragging the item icon to area 125.In some embodiments, double clicking an item on arena 105 can also causethe item to appear in inventory area 125. Discussions of itemmanipulation and combinations are provided below.

Scoreboard 130 displays all of the players competing in the current gamealong with players statistics such as scores and health. Each player canhave a unique icon in scoreboard 130. The players can be listed in orderby current ranking, health, or class in scoreboard 130. In someembodiments, players are shown by current ranking with the highestscoring player being on top and the lowest scoring player being on thebottom.

FIG. 1B illustrates a real-time battle between two players. Each playerhas champions on the bench (e.g., bench 110 or 112) and on arena 105.Each champion can also have a stats indicator 155 that can show variousattributes such as health, stamina, mana, and item(s) equipped. A battleis over once all champions of a team are defeated or one of the playerssurrendered.

FIGS. 1C and 1D illustrate interface 100 with a waiting area 160 inaccordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. Prior to thestart of a battle between two players, the visiting player's avatar 165can placed in waiting area 160, which can be located near the lowerright side of arena 105. Waiting area 160 can be located anywhere oninterface 100 such as the upper left or right corner of arena 105. Insome embodiments, waiting area 160 can be located at an area outside ofinterface 100 such as an in-between world (e.g., a wormhole, a waitinglobby, a neutral zone). Waiting area 160 can be surrounded by a barrier170, which can be an energy barrier, a physical barrier, or an invisiblebarrier. In some embodiments, avatar 165 can only move within barrier170 of waiting area 160 until avatar 175 of the home player move intowaiting area 160 to invite the visiting player (e.g., avatar 165) ontoarena 105.

Avatar 175 of the home player can be placed near or on inventory area125, which can also serve as the home base for avatar 175. From the homebase, the home player can control avatar 175 and move it to waiting area160 in order to interact with avatar 165 (see. FIG. 1D). In someembodiments, avatar 175 can remove barrier 170 by interacting withavatar 165 and/or barrier 170. This effectively invites the visitingplayer onto home arena 105. Once invited onto arena 105, the army of thevisiting player can be transported onto arena 105 and/or bench 112.

In embodiments where waiting area 160 is located on an in-between world(e.g., a neutral zone, a waiting lobby), a wormhole (not shown) canappear in arena 105 that allows avatar 175 of the home player to visitthe in-between world. Once avatar 175 traveled to waiting area 160 ofthe in-between world, avatar 175 can invite (e.g., bring back) avatar165 of the visiting player to home arena 105. Other means oftransporting avatar 175 to the in-between world such as using a magicstair, a magic portal, or a magic teleportation spell/effect arecontemplated and are within the scope of the present disclosure.

The waiting area and the invitation aspect of the game enables playersto interact with each other actively while cultivating positive socialinteractions between the two players. Because the visiting player has tobe invited onto the home player's arena before a battle can begin,players are indirectly encouraged to have a cordial relationship. Thisin turn can greatly increase the overall satisfaction and experience ofthe game.

FIGS. 2A-2B illustrate an item preview process that enables in-gameitems to be quickly equipped and/or combined in a fast and efficientmanner such that the flow of the battle is not interrupted. Aconventional way of equipping and/or holding an item in a game is tofirst select a character, open the inventory bag for that character,find the item that the user wants to equip, and then finally equip theitem. If a user wants to combine items or weapons, then more steps arerequired such as finding a second item (that is needed for acombination), holding the second item, and then combining the seconditem with the already equipped first item. During a real-time battle, bythe time you find the appropriate item, equip it, and/or combine it withanother item, the character could be gravely injured or dead because ofthe time required to do all of those tasks. Additionally, conventionalmethods of combining items (e.g., upgrading a weapon by combining itwith another item) requires another window (e.g., inventory window) topop up that substantially blocks the view of the main interface. This issimply untenable during real-time combat with another player (e.g.,PvP).

The disclosed new and innovative methods and interfaces to combine itemseliminate several of the steps described above. The result is a seamlessway to combine items or to equip an item on a champion without manyintervening steps and without a pop-up interface that can distract theplayer from the real-time combat. During combat, an item (e.g., bow,sword, arrows) can be dropped by one of the champions of the opposingteam when defeated. The item could also be a spawn item, which can betriggered when certain criteria are met such as when the player hasattained a certain rank, a certain amount of gold collected, a certainnumber of consecutive battles won, etc. Items can also randomly spawn.

FIG. 2A illustrates interface 100 with items 205, 210, and 215 in play.Item 205 can be an item dropped by a defeated champion belonging to theremote player. The local player can pick up item 205 by dragging it overto inventory area 125. Alternatively, the local player can double clickon item 205 and have it automatically stored in inventory area 125.Collected items 210 and 215 are shown in inventory area 125.

FIG. 2B illustrates how to equip an item or to combine an item with anitem currently equipped by a champion. As shown in FIG. 2B, item 215 hasbeen dragged over to champion 220. While item 215 hovers over champion220, a small information (or preview) window 225 can be displayed.Information window 225 can contain equipped item data such as itemstatistics (e.g., damage, weapon and/or armor bonus, item name, itemtype, item bonus, combination bonus), description, and effects whenequipped by the character over which item 215 is hovering. The equippeditem data can be the same regardless of the champion's class and/ororigin. In some embodiments, the equipped item data can change based atleast one the champion's class and/or origin. For example, the equippeditem data of a sword can be very different between a warrior and aranger. Although both types of champions can equip a sword, the swordmay have an associated damage bonus for a warrior class champion.

Using information window 225, the user can quickly ascertain whether toequip item 215 on champion 220. The user can move item 215 to adifferent champion such as champion 230 to invoke another window 225with different equipped item data that is specific for champion 230.After quickly hovering item 215 over various champions, the user candetermine which type of special power or effect is desired for thechampion. As shown, once champion 220 is equipped with item 215,champion will gain the ability of “Rapid Firecannon” with +20 damageand/or defense bonuses (e.g., 50% chance of a counter-attack), forexample. In addition, champion 220 attacks cannot be dodged by theopposing team. If this is the desired effect/power, the user can simplydrop item 215 over champion 220, and champion 200 will be instantlyupgraded as described in the equipped item data. In some embodiments,information window 225 can be transparent or semi-transparent such thatsome portion of the background is visible through window 225.

FIG. 3 graphically illustrates an item combination process 300 inaccordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. In FIG. 3, areal-time battle is shown in progress, and the local player hascollected two items 305 and 310, both of which are identical items. Inthis example, items 305 and 310 are both chainmail armor. Usingconventional item combination methods, one or more of items 305 and 310have to be in one of the champions inventory bag and/or be equipped bythe champion. To do this, an inventory window for the specific championhas to be shown in a pop-up window. Next, the player can don the firstchainmail and select a second chainmail to combine with the firstchainmail while the pop-up inventory window is displayed. Once thecombination of the two chainmail armors is completed, the pop-up windowis closed, thereby giving the player an obstructed view of thebattlefield again. If the player changes her mind and does not want tocombine the two chainmail armors and instead wants to combine thechainmail armors on a different character, the player would have torepeat the entire process again with another champion. Each time theprocess is repeated for another champion, a pop-up window would bedisplayed for that champion and each time the player's view of thebattlefield would be blocked and precious time would be lost.

Process 300 enables the player to combine items without the need toequip or open an inventory bag for a specific champion. The items can becombined directly from interface 100 by clicking and dragging an item ontop of the other item. When hovering an item over another item, anunobtrusive window is displayed to display information about thecombined item. An example of hovering is when item 305 is dragged overitem 310 but not released. When item 305 hovers over item 310, acombined-item window 315 can be displayed, which shows general data(e.g., item picture, name) and statistics of the combined item. As shownin FIG. 3, combining items 305 and 310 would yield a new armor that canreflect 35% of damage taken from attacks. If the player chooses toperform the combination, the player simply releases item 305 on top ofitem 310 and a new armor item will be generated. The new armor item canappear in inventory area 125.

Items that are currently being equipped by a champion can reappear ininventory area 125 if the champion is sold (to store 115) or transferredto another player. In some embodiments, equipped items cannot be soldalong with a champion. Once the champion is sold, items that reappear ininventory area 125 can be combined and/or equipped on another champion.Alternatively, both the champion and equipped items can be sold for anaugmented price.

FIG. 4 illustrates an item combination grid 400 showing the potentialeffects and/or items as a result of combining two items from column 410and row 420. For example, combining item 412 (blue sword) with item 423(blue mana) would yield effect 430, “attacks give 15% of max mana.” Inanother example, combining item 414 (bow) with sword 425 (which isidentical to item 412) would give the player obtain the effect “eachsecond, 7% chance to set critical hit to 100%”. It should be noted thatthe effect/item obtained can be assigned to a champion by clicking anddragging the new item onto the champion. Although FIG. 4 only shows thecombinations of 5 different items, the number of combinable items in thegames can be in the hundreds. Additionally, any two items can becombined to create another item that exhibits one or more usefulattributes. In this way, players can freely combine any two items todiscover new items and effects.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart of process 500 for combining items in accordancewith some embodiments of the present disclosure. Process 500 starts at505 where a first item is selected and dragged on top of a second item.The first and second items can be any game items such as weapons,trinkets, ingredients (e.g., plants, flowers, animal parts), scrolls,gem stones, armors, and other intangibles (e.g., mana modifier, staminamodifier, aggression modifier). While the first item is held over thesecond item (e.g., hovering), a combined-item window is displayed at510. The combined-item window can display information about the newcombined item and/or effect. The combined-item window can besemi-transparent and can be displayed such that it would not obstructthe current battle in progress. Once the player confirms the combinationof the selected items by releasing the first item over the second item,a new combined item can be generated at 515. The new item can begenerated and displayed in inventory area 125. In some embodiments, thenew generated area can be automatically equipped by a champion that canmake best use of the new item. For example, if a combined item providesa 200% increase in mana or mana regeneration rate, then the auto-equipmodule can automatically equip the new mana regeneration item to theonly mage on the battlefield. This auto-equip module can be enabled ordisabled by the player. In situations where multiple champions can equipthe new items, the auto-equip module can make a recommendation byhighlighting the recommended champion.

FIG. 6A illustrates an example interface 600 for the shared-draft roundthat enables players to build a new team in accordance with someembodiments of the present disclosure. Shared-draft interface 600 caninclude a player lineup perimeter 605 and a champion lineup perimeter610. Each of the player lineup perimeters 605 and 610 can be a circle, ahalf circle, a square, a triangle, a polygon, an incomplete polygon, ora line. In some embodiments, the champion lineup perimeter 610 can beinside of the player lineup perimeter 605. Alternatively, the playerlineup perimeter 605 can be partially or completely surrounded bychampion lineup perimeter 610. Lineup perimeter 605 can have two or moreplayers (e.g., 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 20) displayed simultaneously. In someembodiments, lineup perimeter 605 can have a maximum of eight players.Lineup perimeter 610 can have two or more (e.g., 8) selectablechampions. The number of selectable champions can be the equal to orgreater than the number of players in lineup perimeter 605.

The selectable champions in lineup perimeter 610 can be populatedrandomly or it can be based on the number of players in lineup perimeter605. The type of champions in lineup perimeter 610 can also be populatedbased on attributes (e.g., rank, experiences, type of player) of one ormore players of lineup perimeter 605. For example, if there is a largegap between ranking and experiences of a group of players as compared toanother, then the level of champions populated in lineup perimeter 610can also vary accordingly. In this way, lower ranked players (who get toselect champions first) have a greater chance of building a competitiveteam that can match or have a better chance against the better players.

In some embodiments, each player is surrounded by a drafting barrierthat restricts the movement of each player. The barrier of each playercan be configured to open based at least on one or more attributes ofeach player such as health and/or experiences. For example, draftingbarriers for players with lower health and/or experiences can openbefore the drafting barriers for players with more health and/orexperiences. For instance, given eight players, the drafting barrier canfor each player can open in the following order: 8^(th) ranked player,7^(th) ranked player, 6^(th) ranked player, 5^(th) ranked player, 4^(th)ranked player, 3^(rd) ranked player, 2^(nd) ranked player, then 1^(st)ranked player. This low-to-high ranking drafting barrier opening orderhelps level the playing field by giving opportunities to lower rankedplayers to select a stronger or better champion for their team. In someembodiments, the drafting order can be random. The drafting order canalso be determined randomly, e.g., based on dice rolls, where eachplayer rolls a pair of dice to determine who gets to draft first.

Once the drafting window for a player opens, the player can then moveand run to one of the champions in lineup perimeter 610 in order to graband draft the champion onto her team. For example, as shown, player 615is enclosed by barrier 620 and cannot move to lineup perimeter 610 untilbarrier 620 dissipates (e.g., opens) when the drafting window for player615 opens. Only then can player 615 move about and move to the desiredchampion (by clicking on the desired champion) and draft the champion bytouching it. For instance, the desired champion can be champion 624,which is far away from player 615. The drafting barrier for player 622can open after the barrier for player 615 opens (e.g., after one or moreseconds). But because champion 624 is much closer to player 622, player615 will unlikely get to champion 624 before player 622 reaches champion624. This is the chance and luck aspect of the drafting process.

Each champion in lineup perimeter 610 can move (e.g., rotate) alongperimeter 610 during the drafting stage. Each champion can showcasetheir specialty (e.g., spells, fighting techniques, and items). This canhelp the players make a decision on which champion to select. During thedrafting stage, each player can select one or more champions in eachround. The drafting stage can have one or more drafting rounds. Eachplayer in lineup perimeter 605 can be represented by an avatar (e.g.,little Legends), which can be selected by the player. In someembodiments, a predetermined amount of time can be given to each playerto select a champion for her team. For example, a player can have 30seconds to select a champion or one will automatically be selected forthe player when time is up.

In some embodiments, champions can move about lineup perimeter 610 in arandom fashion. For example, each champion can move in a zig-zag orunpredictable pattern to make the drafting process even more dynamic andinteractive. Each champion can also move at different speed or stay atone location for a brief period of time. Each champion can also teleportto a random location within lineup perimeter 610.

FIG. 6B illustrates a stage of shared-draft interface 600 where only twoplayers remain to draft in the current round of drafting. As previouslymentioned, the highest ranked player can be the last player to draft.Here, players 630 and 635 are the two highest ranking player. Thus,players 630 and 635 are the last two players that can draft championsfrom lineup perimeter 610, which now has only three champions left forplayers 630 and 635 to choose from.

FIG. 7A is a closeup view of mini-map 150 in accordance with someembodiments of the present disclosure. Mini-map 150 includes avatars(702 through 714) of all the players in the current game. Box 720 aroundavatar 720 indicates the current view of interface 100. In other words,interface 100 is currently showing the battlefield for the playerrepresented by avatar 702. The player can switch view and observeanother arena by clicking on the desired avatar. Each player has her ownunique battlefield. Thus, whenever a different avatar is selected, thecurrent view of the local player can change to the perspective of theselected player, which can be a remote player. Mini-map 150 also enablesuser to observe the champions or team of other players simply byselecting the desired avatar. During game play, a player can alsoobserve live battles of other players by selecting the desired avatar.

FIG. 7B illustrates how avatars are paired to illustrate which player isbattling against which player. Using mini-map 150, a player can quicklychoose which battle to observe. Once an avatar pair is selected, theinterface of the local player can display the live battle between theselected avatars. To select a specific vantage point (i.e., view from aspecific player), the local player can click on the specific avataricon. This can turn the local player's interface to see what the playerof the selected avatar is seeing.

It should be noted that the order of various events and/or stagesdescribed above can have a different order and/or be reversed withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. Forexample, players can first be transported to the arenas of the hostplayers before the planning stage can take place. In another example, asecond drafting stage can occur after a first synchronous battle.

Example Systems

FIG. 8 is a system diagram of an exemplary gaming system 800, which caninclude a graphic module 805, a database 810, a battle generation module815, an auto battle module 820, an auto equip module 825, a championsdrafting module 830, and a processor 835. System 800 may reside on asingle server or may be distributed at various locations on a network.For example, one or more components or modules (e.g., 805, 810, 815,820, 825, 830) of system 800 may be distributed across various locationsthroughout a network. Each component or module of system 800 maycommunicate with each other and with external entities via communicationmodule 830. Each component or module of system 800 may include its ownsub-communication module to further facilitate with intra and/orinter-system communication.

Graphics module 805 includes algorithms and instructions that, whenexecuted by processor 835, cause the processor to render graphicalinterfaces and features as shown and described in FIGS. 1A, 1B, 1C, 1D,2A, 2B, 3, 6A, 6B, 7A, and 7B.

Database 810 can include players data, champions data, in-game itemsdata, etc. For example, database 810 can include a player information,team composition, items inventory, rank, score, health, etc.

Battle generation module 815 includes algorithms and instructions that,when executed by processor 835, cause the processor to match players andcoordinate battles between the various players. Battle generation module815 can also include algorithms and instructions to enable each of theplurality of players to create a team of champions (which can be uniqueto each player); and create a one or more real-time battles between aplurality of human players.

Autobattler module 820 includes algorithms and instructions that, whenexecuted by processor 835, cause the processor to automatically managechampions during the live battle to achieve the best possible outcomegiven the composition of the team, items acquired, champions position onthe battlefield, etc.

Auto equip module 825 includes algorithms and instructions that, whenexecuted by processor 835, cause the processor to suggest orautomatically equip an item the player collected on the battlefield. Theplayer may not have time to properly match the item with the appropriatechampions. This task can be delegated to the auto equip module 825,which can make recommendation on which champion on the player's team toequip a particular item found in the game.

Champion drafting module 830 includes algorithms and instructions that,when executed by processor 835, cause the processor to manage thedrafting process as described and shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B.

FIG. 9 illustrates an exemplary system or apparatus 900 in whichgraphical features of FIGS. 1 through 4 (include sub-figures), 6, and 7and process 500 can be implemented. In accordance with various aspectsof the disclosure, an element, or any portion of an element, or anycombination of elements may be implemented with a processing system 914that includes one or more processing circuits 904. Processing circuits904 may include micro-processing circuits, microcontrollers, digitalsignal processing circuits (DSPs), field programmable gate arrays(FPGAs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), state machines, gated logic,discrete hardware circuits, and other suitable hardware configured toperform the various functionalities described throughout thisdisclosure. That is, the processing circuit 904 may be used to implementany one or more of graphical features and processes described above andillustrated in FIGS. 1 through 7 (including sub-figures).

In the example of FIG. 9, the processing system 914 may be implementedwith a bus architecture, represented generally by the bus 902. The bus902 may include any number of interconnecting buses and bridgesdepending on the specific application of the processing system 914 andthe overall design constraints. The bus 902 may link various circuitsincluding one or more processing circuits (represented generally by theprocessing circuit 904), the storage device 905, and a machine-readable,processor-readable, processing circuit-readable or computer-readablemedia (represented generally by a non-transitory machine-readable medium906). The bus 902 may also link various other circuits such as, but notlimited to, timing sources, peripherals, voltage regulators, and powermanagement circuits, which are well known in the art, and therefore,will not be described any further. The bus interface 908 may provide aninterface between bus 902 and a transceiver 910. The transceiver 910 mayprovide a means for communicating with various other apparatus over atransmission medium. Depending upon the nature of the apparatus, a userinterface 920 (e.g., keypad, display, speaker, microphone, touchscreen,motion sensor) may also be provided.

The processing circuit 904 may be responsible for managing the bus 902and for general processing, including the execution of software storedon the machine-readable medium 906. The software, when executed byprocessing circuit 904, causes processing system 914 to perform thevarious functions described herein for any particular apparatus.Machine-readable medium 906 may also be used for storing data that ismanipulated by processing circuit 904 when executing software.

One or more processing circuits 904 in the processing system may executesoftware or software components. Software shall be construed broadly tomean instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code,programs, subprograms, software modules, applications, softwareapplications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects,executables, threads of execution, procedures, functions, etc., whetherreferred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardwaredescription language, or otherwise. A processing circuit may perform thetasks. A code segment may represent a procedure, a function, asubprogram, a program, a routine, a subroutine, a module, a softwarepackage, a class, or any combination of instructions, data structures,or program statements. A code segment may be coupled to another codesegment or a hardware circuit by passing and/or receiving information,data, arguments, parameters, or memory or storage contents. Information,arguments, parameters, data, etc. may be passed, forwarded, ortransmitted via any suitable means including memory sharing, messagepassing, token passing, network transmission, etc.

The software may reside on machine-readable medium 906. Themachine-readable medium 906 may be a non-transitory machine-readablemedium. A non-transitory processing circuit-readable, machine-readableor computer-readable medium includes, by way of example, a magneticstorage device (e.g., solid state drive, hard disk, floppy disk,magnetic strip), an optical disk (e.g., digital versatile disc (DVD),Blu-Ray disc), a smart card, a flash memory device (e.g., a card, astick, or a key drive), RAM, ROM, a programmable ROM (PROM), an erasablePROM (EPROM), an electrically erasable PROM (EEPROM), a register, aremovable disk, a hard disk, a CD-ROM and any other suitable medium forstoring software and/or instructions that may be accessed and read by amachine or computer. The terms “machine-readable medium”,“computer-readable medium”, “processing circuit-readable medium” and/or“processor-readable medium” may include, but are not limited to,non-transitory media such as, but not limited to, portable or fixedstorage devices, optical storage devices, and various other mediacapable of storing, containing or carrying instruction(s) and/or data.Thus, the various methods described herein may be fully or partiallyimplemented by instructions and/or data that may be stored in a“machine-readable medium,” “computer-readable medium,” “processingcircuit-readable medium” and/or “processor-readable medium” and executedby one or more processing circuits, machines and/or devices. Themachine-readable medium may also include, by way of example, a carrierwave, a transmission line, and any other suitable medium fortransmitting software and/or instructions that may be accessed and readby a computer.

The machine-readable medium 906 may reside in the processing system 914,external to the processing system 914, or distributed across multipleentities including the processing system 914. The machine-readablemedium 906 may be embodied in a computer program product. By way ofexample, a computer program product may include a machine-readablemedium in packaging materials. Those skilled in the art will recognizehow best to implement the described functionality presented throughoutthis disclosure depending on the particular application and the overalldesign constraints imposed on the overall system.

One or more of the components, processes, features, and/or functionsillustrated in the figures may be rearranged and/or combined into asingle component, block, feature or function or embodied in severalcomponents, steps, or functions. Additional elements, components,processes, and/or functions may also be added without departing from thedisclosure. The apparatus, devices, and/or components illustrated in theFigures may be configured to perform one or more of the methods,features, or processes described in the Figures. The algorithmsdescribed herein may also be efficiently implemented in software and/orembedded in hardware.

Note that the aspects of the present disclosure may be described hereinas a process that is depicted as a flowchart, a flow diagram, astructure diagram, or a block diagram. Although a flowchart may describethe operations as a sequential process, many of the operations can beperformed in parallel or concurrently. In addition, the order of theoperations may be re-arranged. A process is terminated when itsoperations are completed. A process may correspond to a method, afunction, a procedure, a subroutine, a subprogram, etc. When a processcorresponds to a function, its termination corresponds to a return ofthe function to the calling function or the main function.

Those of skill in the art would further appreciate that the variousillustrative logical blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithm stepsdescribed in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may beimplemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or combinationsof both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware andsoftware, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits,and processes have been described above generally in terms of theirfunctionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware orsoftware depends upon the particular application and design constraintsimposed on the overall system.

The embodiments described above are considered novel over the prior artand are considered critical to the operation of at least one aspect ofthe disclosure and to the achievement of the above described objectives.The words used in this specification to describe the instant embodimentsare to be understood not only in the sense of their commonly definedmeanings, but to include by special definition in this specification:structure, material or acts beyond the scope of the commonly definedmeanings. Thus if an element can be understood in the context of thisspecification as including more than one meaning, then its use must beunderstood as being generic to all possible meanings supported by thespecification and by the word or words describing the element.

The definitions of the words or drawing elements described above aremeant to include not only the combination of elements which areliterally set forth, but all equivalent structure, material or acts forperforming substantially the same function in substantially the same wayto obtain substantially the same result. In this sense it is thereforecontemplated that an equivalent substitution of two or more elements maybe made for any one of the elements described and its variousembodiments or that a single element may be substituted for two or moreelements in a claim.

Changes from the claimed subject matter as viewed by a person withordinary skill in the art, now known or later devised, are expresslycontemplated as being equivalents within the scope intended and itsvarious embodiments. Therefore, obvious substitutions now or later knownto one with ordinary skill in the art are defined to be within the scopeof the defined elements. This disclosure is thus meant to be understoodto include what is specifically illustrated and described above, what isconceptually equivalent, what can be obviously substituted, and alsowhat incorporates the essential ideas.

In the foregoing description and in the figures, like elements areidentified with like reference numerals. The use of “e.g.,” “etc.,” and“or” indicates non-exclusive alternatives without limitation, unlessotherwise noted. The use of “including” or “includes” means “including,but not limited to,” or “includes, but not limited to,” unless otherwisenoted.

As used above, the term “and/or” placed between a first entity and asecond entity means one of (1) the first entity, (2) the second entity,and (3) the first entity and the second entity. Multiple entities listedwith “and/or” should be construed in the same manner, i.e., “one ormore” of the entities so conjoined. Other entities may optionally bepresent other than the entities specifically identified by the “and/or”clause, whether related or unrelated to those entities specificallyidentified. Thus, as a non-limiting example, a reference to “A and/orB”, when used in conjunction with open-ended language such as“comprising” can refer, in one embodiment, to A only (optionallyincluding entities other than B); in another embodiment, to B only(optionally including entities other than A); in yet another embodiment,to both A and B (optionally including other entities). These entitiesmay refer to elements, actions, structures, processes, operations,values, and the like.

1-45. (canceled)
 46. A computer-implemented method for hostingsynchronous real-time autobattler matches, the method comprising:enabling, by a gaming server, each player of a plurality of players tocreate a corresponding team of champions based on at least one championselected by the player from a list of champions, wherein each player ofthe plurality of players is associated with a home arena; designating,by the gaming server, each player of the plurality of players as one ofa host player or a visiting player a first round of a plurality ofbattle rounds, wherein a first plurality of host players and a firstplurality of visiting players is designated for the first round; andcreating, by the gaming server, a first plurality of synchronousreal-time battles on the home arenas associated with the first pluralityof host players, each synchronous real-time battle having the team ofchampions corresponding to one of the first plurality of host playersand the team of champions corresponding to one of the first plurality ofvisiting players, and being created on the home arena associated withthe host player.
 47. The method of claim 46, further comprising:redesignating, by the gaming server, each player of the plurality ofplayers as one of the host player or the visiting player based on asecond round of a plurality of battle rounds, wherein a second pluralityof host players and a second plurality of visiting players isredesignated for the second round; and creating, by the gaming server, asecond plurality of synchronous real-time battles on the home arenasassociated with the second plurality of host players, each synchronousreal-time battle having the team of champions corresponding to of one ofthe second plurality of host players and the team of championscorresponding to one of the second plurality of visiting players, andbeing created on the home arena associated with the host player.
 48. Themethod of claim 46, further comprising: generating, by the gamingserver, an avatar that corresponds to each player of the plurality ofplayers; and enabling, by the gaming server, each player of theplurality of players to control their corresponding avatar in each roundof the plurality of battle rounds.
 49. The method of claim 48, whereineach player is enabled to control their corresponding avatar to movearound the home arena associated with the host player.
 50. The method ofclaim 46, further comprising: enabling, by the gaming server, eachplayer of the plurality of players to customize a design for theirassociated home arena.
 51. The method of claim 46, further comprising:providing for display, by the gaming server, a graphical carousel thatpresents the list of champions, wherein each at least one champion isselected via the graphical carousel.
 52. The method of claim 46, furthercomprising: enabling, by the gaming server, each player of the pluralityof players to strategically position their corresponding team ofchampions on the home arena associated with the host player.
 53. Themethod of claim 46, further comprising: causing, by the gaming server,the team of champions corresponding to the first plurality of hostplayers to automatically battle the team of champions corresponding tothe first plurality of visiting players.
 54. A non-transitory computerstorage medium storing computer-useable instructions that, when used byone or more processors, cause the one or more processors to performoperations comprising: enabling each player of a plurality of players tocreate a corresponding team of champions based on at least one championselected by the player from a carousel of champions, wherein each playerof the plurality of players is associated with a home arena; designatingeach player of the plurality of players as one of a host player or avisiting player based on a first round of a plurality of battle rounds,wherein a first plurality of host players and a first plurality ofvisiting players is designated for the first round; and creating a firstplurality of synchronous real-time battles on the home arenas associatedwith the first plurality of host players, each synchronous real-timebattle having the team of champions corresponding to one of the firstplurality of host players and the team of champions corresponding to oneof the first plurality of visiting players, and being created on thehome arena associated with the host player.
 55. The medium of claim 54,the operations further comprising: redesignating each player of theplurality of players as one of the host player or the visiting playerbased on a second round of a plurality of battle rounds, wherein asecond plurality of host players and a second plurality of visitingplayers is redesignated for the second round; and creating a secondplurality of synchronous real-time battles on the home arenas associatedwith the second plurality of host players, each synchronous real-timebattle having the team of champions corresponding to of one of thesecond plurality of host players and the team of champions correspondingto one of the second plurality of visiting players, and being created onthe home arena associated with the host player.
 56. The medium of claim54, the operations further comprising: generating an avatar thatcorresponds to each player of the plurality of players; and enablingeach player of the plurality of players to control their correspondingavatar in each round of the plurality of battle rounds.
 57. The mediumof claim 56, wherein each player is enabled to control theircorresponding avatar to move around the home arena associated with thehost player.
 58. The medium of claim 54, the operations furthercomprising: enabling each player of the plurality of players tocustomize a design for their associated home arena.
 59. The medium ofclaim 54, wherein the carousel of champions includes a plurality ofchampions constantly moving in a circular motion.
 60. The medium ofclaim 54, the operations further comprising: enabling each player of theplurality of players to strategically position their corresponding teamof champions on the home arena associated with the host player.
 61. Themedium of claim 54, the operations further comprising: causing the teamof champions corresponding to the first plurality of host players toautomatically battle the team of champions corresponding to the firstplurality of visiting players.
 62. A computerized system, comprising:one or more processors; and one or more computer storage media storingcomputer-useable instructions that, when used by one or more processors,cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising:enabling each player of a plurality of players to create a correspondingteam of champions based on at least one champion selected by the playerfrom a list of champions, wherein each player of the plurality ofplayers is associated with a home arena; designating each player of theplurality of players as one of a host player or a visiting player basedon a first round of a plurality of battle rounds, wherein a firstplurality of host players and a first plurality of visiting players isdesignated for the first round; and creating a first plurality ofsynchronous real-time battles on the home arenas associated with thefirst plurality of host players, each synchronous real-time battlehaving the team of champions and a first avatar corresponding to one ofthe first plurality of host players, and the team of champions and asecond avatar corresponding to one of the first plurality of visitingplayers, and being created on the home arena associated with the hostplayer.
 63. The system of claim 62, the operations further comprising:enabling the first plurality of host players and the first plurality ofvisiting players to control their corresponding first and secondavatars, respectively, in each round of the plurality of battle rounds.64. The system of claim 62, the operations further comprising: enablingeach player of the plurality of players to customize a design for theirassociated home arena.
 65. The system of claim 62, the operationsfurther comprising: providing for display a graphical carousel thatpresents the list of champions, wherein each at least one champion isselected via the graphical carousel.